


Shedding My Skin- A Slytherin's Story

by nanobytes



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Original Character - Freeform, Slytherin, The Battle of Hogwarts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-18
Updated: 2013-06-18
Packaged: 2017-12-15 10:14:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/848319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nanobytes/pseuds/nanobytes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Oi, what's she still doing here?" A seventh year, Seamus Finnigan, asked disgustedly.</p>
<p>"I'm here to fight, you blithering idiot," Demetra said acidly, brandishing her wand. The Gryffindors pulled out their wands and pointed them at her.</p>
<p>"Not you," Demetra said hastily, raising her hands in surrender. "I want to stay and fight with you guys."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shedding My Skin- A Slytherin's Story

**Author's Note:**

> I really can't stand when people hate on Slytherin House, so this was my response to it. I wrote it a while ago, but its just going up now. Unbeta'd. Anything in italics is quoted directly from DH.

" _My word," (Slughorn) puffed, pale and sweaty, his walrus mustache aquiver. "What a to-do! I'm not at all sure whether this is wise, Minerva. He is bound to find a way in, you know, and anyone who has tried to delay him will be in most grievous peril-"_

" _I shall expect you and the Slytherins in the Great Hall in twenty minutes, also," said Professor McGonagall. "If you wish to leave with your students, we shall not stop you. But if any of you attempt to sabotage our resistance or take up arms against us within this castle, then, Horace, we duel to kill."_

" _Minerva!" he said, aghast._

_"The time has come for Slytherin House to decide upon its loyalties," interrupted Professor McGonagall. "Go and wake your students, Horace."_

There was only fog around her. Demetra tried to make her way through the fog, but she'd only get a couple steps in when an unseen rock or root would trip her, or else a tree would materialize out of the mist inches from her face. The harder she struggled through the dense fog, the more panicked she became. She felt she should be following something, but she couldn't see what- the fog was too thick, the forest around her too dense to get anywhere quickly. She searched for her wand, knowing a spell could help, but she didn't have it. Her only hope was to catch up to whatever she was following.

After a while the fog began to thin out, leaving Demetra standing in a small clearing, surrounded by walls of the thick fog on either side. In front of her stood a thick wall of dark stone, like the walls of the Hogwarts castle, two archways set into it, leading off into two completely different-looking halls. One swirled with dark mist, while the other was completely void of the mist and fog she tired of- she could see the smooth flagstones of the hall's floor leading off around a corner. Demetra started for that arch, but paused. There was something intriguing about the swirling dark mist, something that compelled her towards it, but she ignored the feeling. The other hall- the clear one- called to her too, as if the one's she had been following had just disappeared around the corner, and were waiting for her, whispering for her to join them. Demetra shook her head at the swirling darkness in the other hall. They mist was such a sinister, dark color, and it swirled out threateningly towards her feet as she walked towards the other arch.

Demetra stepped through the archway and into the hall, the sound of her footsteps echoing down it. She kept glancing over her shoulder as she walked, checking to make sure the mist from the other hall hadn't followed her. Voices echoed up from the other end of the hall, around the corner. Demetra frowned. The voices sounded wrong, somehow.

And then a new fog, much thicker then the one in the forest, curled around the corner ahead, pale and ghostly. It curled into barely distinguishable faces, gone before she could recognize them. The fog reached her feet and wrapped itself around her… She couldn't run… Couldn't breathe… There was a deep, ringing sound reverberating up through the flagstones…

Demetra's eyes flew open and she gasped for air. Chest heaving, she sat up, wiping the sweat from her brow. She always hated that dream.

There was a thud, and Demetra, frowning, parted the emerald bed curtains and peering into her dormitory. The rest of the girls were already awake, annoyed looks smeared on their faces.

"What's going on?" Demetra asked, checking the old clock on the wall. It was late, almost eleven. Demetra hadn't been asleep that long…

"Professor Slughorn called us out of bed," Katarine Gregorson, Demetra's best friend and fellow sixth year, told her.

"That's… strange," Demetra said, rolling out of bed as the sound of a gong echoed through the room. Demetra recognized it vaguely as the sound that had awoken her.

Katarine nodded, but otherwise didn't say anything as she dressed in her school robes. Professor Snape and the Carrows had cracked down on the dress code, punishing even the slightest infraction of the dress code. Muggle clothes were strictly prohibited, and Demetra assumed they wouldn't take kindly to dressing gowns either.

She peeled off her sweaty dressing gown and slid into her black robes, adjusting the emerald and silver tie around her neck. She was the last one dressed- the other girls had already left the dormitory, but Katarine stood by the door, impatiently tapping her foot while running a hand through her heavy, dark curls which resembled those of her distant cousin Bellatrix.

Demetra grabbed her wand from her bedside table and checked her reflection in the old mirror by the door, making sure everything was in order. Her black hair was pulled back in loose bun, but otherwise she looked clean and to the book. She frowned. Really, was the constant dress code necessary? Katarine cleared her throat.

"Let's go, Dem," she said. Demetra sighed before following her friend into the common room.

XXXXXX

The common room was crowded with Slytherins, making the low-ceiling room, usually cool and comfortable, humid and stuffy. Demetra and Katarine made their way through a group of first years, still in their night clothes, before falling into line with their fellow sixth years.

"What's this all about?" Seventh year Pansy Parkinson asked loudly, her voice bored. Nobody answered her; instead the room fell silent as Professor Slughorn spoke.

"Slytherin House, please follow me to the Great Hall."

As soon as they stepped out of the common room, Demetra could hear the pounding of feet on the floors above.

"What the hell is going on?" Katarine whispered. Demetra shrugged. The usually silent lines were abuzz, whispers rebounding along the dungeon walls. What could be so important that Professor Snape had called them out of bed? A cold fear seemed to seep into Demetra's stomach as they climbed the stairs, merging into the crowd of students headed for the Great Hall.

Outbursts suddenly echoed along the corridor.

_"That was Potter!"_

_"_ Harry Potter _!"_

_It was him, I swear, I just saw him!"_

Demetra and Katarine looked at each other. "Harry Potter? In the castle?" Katarine breathed, shocked.

"That must be why Professor Snape wants us in the Great Hall, I guess," Demetra said, brow furrowed.

They flooded into the Great Hall and took a seat at the Slytherin table. The Hall was humming with the sound of voices not even trying to whisper anymore. A few minutes later and a large group of people entered, some she recognized at recent Hogwarts alumni from the Gryffindor Quidditch team, others, older witches and wizards, she didn't recognize at all.

"Weasleys," Katarine whispered to her, nodding at the group of red-haired people taking seats at the Gryffindor table. Demetra nodded, a small scowl on her face. Gryffindors. They were snobs in their own right, thought they were better because they were brawny and "brave of heart" or whatever.

The hall started to quiet down as Professor McGonagall stepped forward on the raised platform at the top of the hall.

"You are all in danger here," she began. "Lord Voldemort is coming," She was interrupted as whispers broke out throughout the hall. Katarine gave Demetra a questioning look.

"Why would he come here?" Demetra heard a fourth year down the table whisper to his friends.

"Because of this, all students are being evacuated from the castle," McGonagall continued, "And  _evacuation will be overseen by Mr. Filch and Madam Pomfrey. Prefects, when I give the word, you will organize your House and take your charges, in an orderly fashion, to the evacuation point."_

Demetra looked around; most of the students seemed terrified. A boy at the Hufflepuff table raised his voice.

_"And what if we want to stay and fight?"_

_There was a smattering of applause._

Demetra herself perked up at his question. Stay and fight? They must be crazy. And yet, there was a strange feeling in her stomach, a slight tugging at her heart…

_"If you are of age, you may stay," said Professor McGonagall._

Demetra sighed. Yes, she was seventeen, barely. But…

_"What about our things?" called a girl at the Ravenclaw table. "Our trunks, our owls?"_

_"We have no time to collect possessions," said Professor McGonagall. "The important thing is to get you out of here safely."_

_"Where's Professor Snape?"_ Demetra shouted out. The other Houses turned to look at her.

_"He has, to use the common phrase, done a bunk," replied Professor McGonagall, and a great cheer erupted from the Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws._

A whispering rose from the Gryffindor side of the Great Hall, but Demetra ignored it, focusing on Professor McGonagall's words.

_"We have already placed protection around the castle," Professor McGonagall was saying, "but it is unlikely to hold for very long unless we reinforce it. I must ask you, therefore, to move quickly and calmly, and do as your prefects-"_

_But her final words were drowned as a different voice echoed throughout the Hall. It was high, cold, and clear: there was no telling from where it came; it seemed to issue from the walls themselves. Like the monster it had once commanded, it might have lain dormant there for centuries._

Demetra felt cold dread spread throughout her body, and she couldn't move for fear.

_"I know that you are preparing to fight." There were screams amongst the students, some of whom clutched each other, looking around in terror for the source of the sound. "Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood."_

Demetra and Katarine looked at each other. Katarine's eyes were wide with fear, fear that mirrored Demetra's own.

_There was silence in the Hall now, the kind of silence that presses against the eardrums, that seems too huge to be contained by walls._

_"Give me Harry Potter," said Voldemort's voice, "and none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter, and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harry Potter, and you will be rewarded."_

_"You have until midnight."_

Demetra's heart was pounding as she scanned the Great Hall, and almost instantly, her eyes found him- Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, The Chosen One. Then a familiar figure down the table rose to her feet. Pansy Parkinson stood, a shaking arm raised and pointed at Harry, screaming.

_"But he's there! Potter's_ there _!" Someone Grab him!"_

Demetra rolled her eyes. As if these people would give up their one and only chance at defeating the Dark Lord. How thick could you get?

Then it happened, almost as she thought this- the students at the Gryffindor table stood, pulling out their wands, closely followed by the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. The rest of the school, a united front against her House. She raised her eyebrows at them, glancing up at McGonagall.

_"Thank you, Miss Parkinson," said Professor McGonagall in a clipped voice. "You will leave the Hall first with Mr. Filch. If the rest of your House could follow."_

Pansy followed Filch out of the Hall, and the rest of the Slytherins stood to follow. But Demetra stood rooted to the spot, even as people brushed past her.

"Dem, come on," Katarine said impatiently, taking Demetra's hand and dragging her along with the rest of the Slytherins.

What to do? McGonagall made it very clear they didn't want any of  _her kind_ staying behind, but why should that stop her? She wanted to stay and fight.

Demetra stopped in her tracks and grabbed her best friend's hand.

"What is it, Dem?" Katarine asked, but Demetra shushed her and dragged her around a corner.

She took a deep breath. "I'm staying."

It took Katarine a second to process what she had said. "What do you mean, you're staying?" she shrieked, and Demetra had to clasp a hand over her friend's mouth.

"I'm staying here," she repeated. "To fight against Voldemort."

"But," Katarine started, removing Demetra's hand from her mouth. "What about you parents? Aren't you… aren't you worried he'll go after them?"

Demetra let out a mirthless laugh. "He can't. You of all people know that." It was true- Demetra spent most of her time at school or at Katarine's family's mansion- Demetra's own parents had been in America for the past two years, tending her dying aunt's estate there.

"But-" Katarine started.

"Besides," Demetra interrupted, "either we win today and there's nothing to worry about, or we lose and he'll never know I was here."

Katarine shook her head. "You're crazy. They'll never let you, you know. They'll send you home as soon as they see you."

"Well, then I'll tell them-"

"Tell them what? That you turned your back on the House of Slytherin?"

"Katarine, I-"

"No! I can't let you do this! What if- what if you don't-" Katarine couldn't go on.

"Listen, Katarine, I have to do this. I'm not asking you to stay with me. My mind is already made up."

Katarine sighed. "Really?"

Demetra nodded.

"Well, then, I'm really going to miss you." She wrapped her arms around Demetra one last time, in one last hug. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"You don't think we can defeat him, do you?" Demetra asked.

Katarine shrugged. "How do I know? I do know that he has more Death Eaters than ever. And Bella… she's ruthless. If she sees you, if any of them do, they will kill you."

"I know." Demetra uttered these last words quietly.

Katarine took her hand, clasping it one last time in goodbye. She looked about to say something, but then just shook her head.

Katarine slipped her hand from Demetra's. "Good luck," she whispered, her eyes wet, before melting back into the mass of students being escorted from the castle. The rest of the Slytherins were long gone already, but Demetra watched the top of her friend's head bobbing in the crowd before it disappeared over the stairs.

The crowd in the entrance hall had thinned out, leaving only Demetra and a few straggling underage Gryffindors. One of them, a boy she remembered was named Collin Creevey in her year, gave her an odd look before slipping down an empty passage in an attempt to stay and fight.

Suddenly a group of Gryffindors burst from the Great Hall, stopping their charge when they saw her.

"Oi, what's she still doing here?" A seventh year, Seamus Finnigan, asked disgustedly.

"I'm here to fight, you blithering idiot," Demetra said acidly, brandishing her wand. The Gryffindors pulled out their wands and pointed them at her.

"Not you," Demetra said hastily, raising her hands in surrender. "I want to stay and fight  _with_  you guys."

Another seventh year with nasty bruises and cuts all over his face stepped forward. "You're serious?" he asked.

"Come on, Neville, we can't trust her, she's a Slytherin-" said one of the girls, but Demetra interrupted her.

"And why should the fact that I'm a Slytherin make any difference in whether or not I should fight against You-Know-Who?" Demetra spat angrily. "I'm just as willing to fight him as any of you!"

"Well, er…" started Seamus.

"Exactly. Not everyone in Slytherin aspires to be a bloody Death Eater, you know."

Neville grinned at her. "Well then, it'll be nice fighting along side you, ...?" Neville paused then, waiting.

"Demetra," she told him. How could this be Neville Longbottom? She thought. The seventh years always made fun of what a pansy he was. He didn't look like a pansy now though- he looked like a fighter.

"Demetra," he repeated, holding out his hand. She shook it, grinning, while the rest of the Gryffindors muttered dissent. Neville gestured for them to follow him, and the group started off down the hall, Demetra with them.

"What is it you lot have against Slytherins anyway?" she asked. "We're not all pure-blood loving lunatics."

"You are rather pretentious," one of the girls said.

Demetra raised her eyebrows. "You Gryffindors are pretty 'pretentious' yourselves," She pointed out. "You think you're legitimately  _better_ than the rest of us somehow, and that you're more pure or something. Makes us Slytherins sick."

"And snobbish," Another spoke up.

"I repeat my last statement."

"Well, the whole pure-blood thing is pretty off-putting," Neville said sheepishly.

Demetra raised an eyebrow at him. "Aren't you pure-blood? Besides, half of Slytherin is lying when they say they're pureblood. Personally, I think the whole thing is bol-"

Demetra was cut off mid-curse when the wall of the castle shook.

"It's starting," Seamus whispered.

Demetra nodded, her mouth suddenly dry.

"Mr. Longbottom!" A voice called, and the group turned to see Professor Sprout.

"There you are, Longbottom, I've been looking for you. I need your help reinforcing the defenses on the south side."

Neville nodded. "Seamus, you're in charge." And with that, he sped off after Professor Sprout.

"Ok, Fred said the secret entrance was somewhere around here," Seamus started.

"You mean this one?" Demetra said, one hand pressed against the stone wall. The Gryffindors gave her a funny look, and she sighed, rolling her eyes. She pressed the loose stone with the small Hogwarts crest in its corner, and suddenly the wall dissolved.

"How did you-?" A black seventh year asked.

Demetra blushed. "I saw the Weasley twins checking it out once a few years ago."

"Nice going," Seamus said, clapping her on the shoulder. "Ok, you all know what to do."

There was a flash of light and the castle shook again, dust raining down from the ceiling.

"McGonagall was right," one of the girls said, "I just hope the enchantments hold long enough for everyone to get into place."

"Don't worry, Lavender, I'm sure we learned enough in the D.A. to be able to handle this," Seamus said reassuringly. "Dean, Come over here a second," he added to the black seventh year.

Demetra bit her lip. What had she gotten herself into?

Just then another blast shook the castle, this one even harder than the others. A nearby window was blasted open, the glass scattering across the floor.

"Merlin," Demetra breathed, as screams echoed from outside. She stepped closer to peek outside and gasped. The grounds were swarming, spells flying everywhere. Huge spiders were crawling everywhere; one was making its way up the way to the window.

"Stupefy!" Demetra yelled, wand pointed at the beast. Her spell struck its head and it tumbled to the ground. A spell flew through the window, almost hitting her, and blasted the wall.

"Demetra, look out!" Seamus called, and Demetra turned in time to see a giant hand reaching towards the window. She fired another spell- it hit at the same time a spell from Lavender did, and the giant howled before stomping away.

Voices echoed from the secret passage. "Parvati…" Lavender said nervously, her eyes flicking towards the other girl in fear.

"They're coming," Parvati said quietly.

Demetra's stomach tensed, cold fear and adrenaline making her feel queasy.

"Wands ready," Seamus whispered. Demetra tightened her grip on her wand, blood pounding in her ears. She could hear footsteps in the passage as well as voices now.

The stone wall sealing the passage exploded, and Demetra was blasted off her feet. Somehow, she managed to keep a grip on her wand and sent a hex into the Death Eater ranks now flowing through the passage.

Dust clogged the air and she couldn't see where the others were, but she could hear their voices and saw the spells aimed at the enemy.

A pillar exploded over her shoulder, and Demetra had to dodge the falling rubble. Another spell flew by, missing her by inches. The Death Eaters were forcing them back little by little as more of them appeared from the hidden passage. Screams and bangs echoed throughout the castle, and Demetra lost all sense of time as she fought.

XXXXXX

The group of Hogwartians was forced towards the stairs. Demetra found herself braced against the banister, dueling a masked Death Eater, Peeves soaring overhead wreaking havoc. There was a shout from one of the Death Eaters, but she couldn't tell what was said.

Demetra blasted that Death Eater back and turned to face another.

"A Slytherin?" the Death Eater hissed in a cold, feminine voice. "What you doing here?"

"Kicking your arse," Demetra growled, aiming a spell at her. The Death Eater dodged it. The Death Eater seemed to hiss before screaming and aiming the killing curse at Demetra. She managed to avoid it and shot a curse of her own.

"Die, you venomous traitor," the Death Eater howled.

Moments later Lavender Brown appeared out of the dust, followed closely by yet another Death Eater. Demetra's Death Eater must not have seen her comrade, because her next spell missed Demetra and shattered the banister behind her, blasting both Lavender and the Death Eater over the edge. Parvati screamed, and Demetra sent a curse at her own dueling partner, sending the Death Eater soaring across the corridor.

The battle raged on, seeming never ending.

XXXXXX

" _You have fought," said the high, cold voice, "valiantly. Lord Voldemort knows how to value bravery._

" _Yet you have sustained heavy losses. If you continue to resist me, you will all die, one by one. I do not wish for this to happen. Every drop of magical blood spilled is a loss and a waste._

" _Lord Voldemort is merciful. I command my forces to retreat immediately._

" _You have one hour. Dispose of your dead with dignity. Treat your injured."_

XXXXXX

Demetra wandered the Great Hall alone, even though the place was crowded. Rubble littered the floor- Demetra kicked a chunk of stone away. Her stomach rolled every time her eyes fell on the dead or injured; Parvati sat sobbing beside the ominously still body of Lavender Brown, and the entire red-headed clan of Weasley's were mourning the death of one of the twins. Everywhere she looked, people were sobbing over the dead, and she felt sick. People also glared at her too, shooting distrusting glances her way every few seconds. She wanted to scream at them, tell them why she had stayed- but she didn't know that herself, only that she felt she must.

"Hello, Demetra," said a soft voice behind her, and Demetra turned to see a blonde Ravenclaw in her year.

"Hi, Luna," Demetra said quietly. She had never really talked to Luna personally, although she could list several examples of why people referred to her as "Loony Lovegood." Now though, she just looked tired, as did everyone.

"You seem a little roguish, wandering by yourself," Luna started, falling into step with Demtra.

Demetra shrugged. "Well, I don't really have any friends here. Although looking around, I'm starting to think that's a good thing." She grimaced as her eyes fell on the limp body of Lavender Brown again.

Luna gazed thoughtfully towards the large doors of the Great Hall before saying anything. "I used to feel that way too, before the D.A. Although I don't suppose you'd know much about that, seeing as you're a Slytherin. The other Houses didn't take too kindly to any of you joining us then."

"They don't seem to take too kindly about it now," Demetra sighed sadly as they stood just inside the Great Hall. A man Demetra only just recognized as the old Gryffindor Quidditch captain Oliver Wood entered the Hall and passed by them, carrying a limp body.

"Oh, Merlin," Demetra gasped, recognizing the motionless body of Colin Creevey.

Luna put a comforting hand on her shoulder, but Demetra shrugged it off.

"I'm sorry, Luna, but I just want to be alone for a bit."

Luna nodded. "Don't worry about the rest of them. They'll come around. It only takes people a while to get used to something different, that's all," said sagely before slipping back into the Great Hall.

Demetra leaned against the wall and sighed, sliding to the floor. She knew the battle would probably start again soon, although no one had seen Harry Potter since he had first appeared in the Great Hall shortly after the cease-fire was called, and then he had disappeared.

Demetra twirled her wand between her fingers, a suffocating feeling coming over her. She couldn't breath, and tugged on the emerald and silver tie around her neck, trying to loosen it. Finally she just pulled the thing off and chucked it at the ground, where it landed among a pile of crumbling, fallen stone.

She stared at it, the green and silver standing out among the browns and greys of dust and gravel, the crest of Slytherin House standing out in great relief. As she watched, a gust of chill wind swept through the hall and lifted it, swirling it through the air before carrying it out of sight.

XXXXXX

Another spell whizzed by her as Demetra melted into the flow of Hogwartians and Death Eaters retreating into the castle. The Boy Who lived was dead, but they were still fighting.

"Come on, Demetra!" Seamus yelled over the noise as her brushed past her, aiming a spell over his shoulder as he went. Demetra heard a nearby Death Eater's voice above the rest- Bellatrix Lestrange's, as she screamed, the curse aimed at Seamus as she ran after her master into the Great Hall.

"Crucio!"

"Seamus, look out!" Demetra screamed, shoving him out of the way. She say him stumble before the spell hit her right in the chest, and she fell to the ground, screaming and writhing in pain. It seemed to subside slowly, even though the torturous moment was only a few seconds in length.

"Are you ok?" Seamus was at her side as she lay on the ground recovering, trying to suck in air. She nodded, and he helped her shakily to her feet.

"Thanks," she whispered, still trying to catch her breath.

"No thank you," Seamus said. "You'll be all right?" She nodded, cursing a Death Eater as it ran by.

"Yeah," she croaked.

He nodded and disappeared back into the fight. She watched a Shield Charm bloom to life between him and a group of other students and Lord Voldemort before she launched back into the battle.

Duelers were everywhere in the Great Hall, but suddenly an inhuman scream tore the air as Bellatrix fell at the hand of Molly Wealsey, and those dueling Lord Voldemort were blasted back as he made for the red-haired witch. But then a voice echoed across the Hall.

"Protego!"

A Shield Charm appeared between Voldemort and the witch, and suddenly Harry Potter was standing there, once again the Boy Who Lived.

XXXXXX

_"Avada Kedavra!"_

_"Expelliarmus!"_

_The bang was like a cannon blast, and the gold flames that had erupted between them, at the dead center of the circle they had been treading, marked the point where the spells collided. Harry saw Voldemort's green jet meet his own spell, saw the Elder Wand fly high, dark against the sunrise, spinning across the enchanted ceiling like the head of Nagini, spinning through the air toward the master it would not kill, whohad come to take fun possession of it at last. And Harry, with the unerring skill of the Seeker, caught the wand in his free hand as Voldemort fell backward, arms splayed, the slit pupils of the scarlet eyes rolling forward. Tom Riddle hit the floor with a mundane finality, his body feeble and shrunken, the white hands empty, the snakelike face vacant and unknowing. Voldemort was dead, killed by his own rebounding curse, and Harry stood with two wands in his hand, staring down at his enemy's shell._

_One shivering second of silence, the shock of the moment suspended: and then the tumult broke around Harry as the screams and the cheers and the roars of the watchers rent the air._

Demetra cheered with the rest as Voldemort fell and the Death Eaters ran from the castle, but as people crowded around Harry, desiring to thank him, shake his hand, Demetra took a seat at the far end of the Slytherin table, alone. She stared at the patterns on the table, exhausted and unsure of what to do now, not paying attention to the rest of the Hall and the people in it until she heard a cold voice.

"What's she doing here?"

Demetra looked up from the table into the face of a Hufflepuff girl. And her wand.

"Yeah, I thought all the Slytherins had left," another voice called. All the other students around her pulled their wands on her, and Demetra raised her hands in surrender.

"What's going on?" Luna asked curiously, appearing at her side, along with the group of seventh year Gryffindors Demetra had fought alongside of, excluding Neville and Lavender.

"Seems we can't let you sit here all alone," Dean said, sliding onto the bench next to her. "Have you eaten yet?" He asked, gesturing to the small amount of breakfast foods sitting on the table that had appeared unnoticed by Demetra.

She shook her head as the Gryffindors and Luna all took a seat around her.

"Do you want something?" Seamus asked the Hufflepuff girl and the rest of the shocked onlookers.

"But…but she's a Slytherin!" The girl exclaimed.

Seamus swallowed a bit of toast. "She saved me from taking the Cruciatus Curse. A worthy act of a Gryffindor, I'll say." And with that, he took a draught of pumpkin juice.

Demetra swallowed. A Gryffindor? Her stomach churned again in confusion. She stood, an idea forming in her head.

"Where are you going?" Luna asked brightly from where she sat next to Demetra. The Gryffindors looked up at her, a question on all their faces.

"Ill be right back," Demetra told them all, before making her way across the Great Hall to where Neville was surrounded by admirers while he ate. The sword he had pulled from the Sorting Hat earlier lay by his plate, but it wasn't the sword she was after.

"Hey, Neville," she asked, slipping between to gawking Ravenclaw girls. "Do you still have the Sorting Hat?"

"Yeah, it's right here. Why?"

"Well, I sort of wanted to, um, borrow it."

Neville gazed at her, seeming to know exactly why she was after it, before reaching towards the bench beside him and bringing the Hat into view. "Here," he said, handing it over. "Although I think McGonagall wants it back soon, so I would hurry."

Demetra nodded and slipped off before anyone else saw her. She swiftly made her way down to the dungeons; the only place she knew for certain would be deserted.

"Draconis maxima," she whispered to the damp stone wall, and the stone door slid open.

The common room was uncharacteristically quiet, the torches on the walls magically igniting as she entered.

She stepped into her dormitory and closed the door, flopping down onto her bed. She wasn't sure what would happen when she tried what she was about to do, but she didn't know what else there was-

She pulled the Sorting Hat onto her head, and sat there. It didn't say anything, and Demetra was about to give up and take it off when a voice echoed in her head.

"Confused?" it chuckled at her, and Demetra pulled a face. "Don't worry, you aren't the first to try on the Sorting Hat again in a moment of confusion, my dear. Professor Snape tried me many times in the last year, but at least he listened, unlike young Harry, who tore me off before I could finish my thought."

Demetra sat, shocked for second, before she was able to speak. "I was just wondering if you could help me," she said quietly.

The Sorting hat grunted. "I stand by what I said six years ago. You're a clever girl, and I can tell you would do anything to achieve what you really want- change. You could have done great in Ravenclaw like your mother, but you also inherited your father's desire to succeed. But your heart… your heart is your own. I could put you in Gryffindor now if you wanted, but I know that's not what you want. It wasn't what Professor Snape wanted either."

Demetra took a deep breath. "What did he want?"

The Sorting Hat tutted. "That information is not mine to share."

"So what do I do now?" Demetra cried in frustration.

"You could be a Gryffindor, although it's never been done before that a student switches Houses. But know there was a reason I put you in Slytherin- you've gotten what you wanted, even though others might look down on you for it at first. Just remember what I said last year at the sorting- the Houses had to come together." And with that, the Sorting Hat fell silent.

Demetra tore the Sorting Hat off and threw it onto her bed. She stood and paced the room, still unsure. Then her eyes caught something off to the side.

She turned to the mirror, feeling as if she had come full circle- last night she had been inspection-ready, her robes clean and her hair neat. Now she looked nothing like the girl in the mirror last night, the Slytherin that followed the rules and went along with her friends when they teased younger students because that was what had been expected of her. Now though, she was different. Her hair had fallen out and hung around her face, her robes were torn and bloody. She had fought alongside Gryffindors, befriended Luna Lovegood even though others said she was strange, and fought in the Battle of Hogwarts, as many were already calling it. She had done what none of the other Slytherins would do, and yet-

She still felt like herself, and here she was standing in her dormitory, still feeling as if it and the rest of the dungeons belonged to her.

She grabbed the Sorting Hat off her bed and headed back upstairs.

XXXXXX

"Thanks, Neville," Demetra smiled, handing him back the Sorting Hat. Her eyes caught on the sword again. "so is it true only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that out of the Hat?" She asked.

Neville nodded, and Demetra laughed. "Thanks, Neville," she said, heading back to the Slytherin table where the others were still eating, reveling in the fact that she would never be able to retrieve that sword.

She sat back down between Dean and Luna and pulled a plate in front of her. "could you pass the jelly?" she asked Seamus.

And so they sat there for a while, talking and laughing. Luna told them all about Wrackspurts and Nargles while Dean watched her appreciatively. Apparently they had both been held at Malfoy Manor and rescued, which didn't explain the guilty glances he kept shooting towards Neville. They all laughed when she mentioned what a tool she thought Draco was.

Yes she had shed her skin, it was true. But like all snakes, there was newer, better skin underneath.


End file.
